


Keys To The Kingdom

by Melaniemia



Category: Good Girls (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-31
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:47:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24180805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Melaniemia/pseuds/Melaniemia
Summary: When Beth needs saving who will her sister call for help?
Relationships: Beth Boland/Rio
Comments: 30
Kudos: 175





	1. Chapter 1

Takes place during season 2.

His voice rang out through the empty apartment with the same authority it always held. They had no other choice but to ask him for help. It seemed like this routine would never end no matter how many times they tried to get out.

"So, I'm here in this shitty building in the middle of the night because you bitches can't seem to get on with your lives without me. What shit you get into this time? And where's the red headed one?" Rio asked, making himself at home as he glided into the kitchen and spun Annies kitchen chair around to sit with his legs straddled on either side of the back.

"Be nice, this is my shitty apartment you're talking about here." Annie snapped back, earning nothing more then a grunt in response.

"Well, lets get going because I have other shit to do tonight." he said, snatching a bag of chips off the counter he had his arms laid on and shoving a handful into his mouth. The crunch that filled the small space reminded them of the deafening silence and urged them to explain.

"We can't find Beth." Ruby said simply, never taking her eyes off of the gang member, paying close attention to his every move.

"How is that my problem. You better not be telling me that you called me out here because you and your friend had a little argument about carpool or some bake sale bullshit." he said, pushing away from the table and narrowing his eyes in annoyance.

"You think we like calling you? Hell no we don't. But you're the only one who can help us." Annie said.

"What makes you think I can help? Let her chill out for a bit I'm sure she will show up. Now since I'm already here, let's discuss the money you're cleaning for me. How much you got done so far?" he asked, clearly dismissing their concerns and grabbing a can of coke from the fridge.

"Just tell him." Ruby whispered, shaking her head in Annies direction.

"We cleaned all the money. You can pick it up whenever you want. And you can keep our cut." the youngest woman started.

Rio regarded them with a simple arch of his brow and a long sip of soda before pulling himself up to sit on the creaky kitchen counter. His legs swung over the edge as he locked eyes with each of his associates.

"She aint just missin, is she? What did you three do?" he asked, his voice sounding less calm with every word.

"It's not anything to do with us. It's her husband." Annie looked around the room like she didn't know how to continue. But Rio didn't seem to need much more of an explanation.

"You tellin me that stuck up piece of shit is dumb enough to do something to her? That girl can take care of herself. Aint no way she would cower in the corner like some pussy just because her husband drank too much."

"You're right about that. She's fought him off plenty of time." Ruby explained.

"Nearly killed him once when he tried to hurt one of their kids." Annie added.

"But the thing is, we got a phone call from Beth just a few hours ago. She said a bunch of stuff about the kids schedules and important things she wanted us to know if something ever happened to her. So of course we panicked and drove over to her house right away." Ruby could tell that Rio was starting to realize this was more then some fight between friends.

"We walked right up to the front door at midnight and Dean refused to let us inside. So obviously I climbed up the side of the house to see what I could and I saw their bathroom light on and I heard a scream."

"You think it was your sister? That what you're tellin me?" He pressed, hopping off the counter and stalking closer to Annie. He pulled his gun from his waist and checked to see that it was fully loaded before setting it on the island between them.

Ruby nodded. "She is not with him anymore. Shes been trying to get a divorce for the longest time but he keeps fighting her and recently she filed for a restraining order but it got denied. He's not suppose to even be at the house."

"If I waste my time showing up to this house and everything's fine I'm going to be real upset. And you can bet you're sweet asses that I will be keeping your cut of the money for this." He grabbed his gun off the table and slammed the door on his way out. He could act as put out and as inconvenienced as he wanted but inside he was bubbling over with rage. His knuckles turned white as he gripped the steering wheel and drove to the Boland house.

The fact that it was 2 in the morning in the rich, suburban part of town did nothing to deter him from slamming his foot against the front door until it busted off its hinges and fell to the ground, allowing him entry. He was about to make a dramatic call out to the empty living room that he stepped foot inside when he saw a small figure huddled on the floor near the couch.

"Hey hey, it's alright. I'm a friend of your mamas. Where is she at?" he spoke softly to the small girl. He barely had time to notice that her hair was matted with fresh blood before she was barreling towards him in a panic.

Rio caught the girl easily and wasted no time in hauling her up against his shoulder in one arm while he held his gun in the other. The child had her head buried in Rios neck as she sobbed. "Daddy doesn't live here anymore but I woke up to go to the bathroom and I heard him in mommys room. When I went in there to talk to mommy, he came after me. He always comes after me. It's only ever me." she whispered as sobs shook her entire body.

"Shh Shh, I'm going to help your ma. You just gotta be brave like she is and do what I say." he explained as he took the stairs slowly, one by one, until he reached the landing. "I'm going to put you down and you're gonna go get your other brothers and sisters and go outside and get in the black car that's parked out front. I need you to be smart and fast and take care of them for me so I can take care of your mama. You got that, Angel?" he said, setting her down gently and pushing a single car key into her tiny hand. He pushed her between her shoulder blades firmly in the direction of the bedrooms.

The small girl nodded before running into the room at the end of the hall. In the opposite direction he heard all he needed to hear. The sound of a lamp crashing to the floor told him that was the bedroom he should be rushing into next. He stood outside the door with his weapon aimed, waiting until the four kids scurried down the stairs and out the front door before he finally shoved it open.

He shouldn't have been surprised with what he saw. He knew Beth wasn't some defenseless housewife. But he still felt a small part of him swell up with pride when he saw the red head straddling her husband, clenching a baseball bat that was dripping with his blood tightly in her hands. Her eyes snapped up to meet his in a slight panic, thinking one of the kids had walked in. When she saw who it was she breathed a sigh of relief and got up from her spot on the floor. She didn't give herself time to explain. Her priorities would always be her children.

"Did you see the kids? Emma? Where's Emma?" She was frantic as she dropped the bat to the floor and ran her hands through her hair, unknowingly threading blood through it like summer sun high lights.

"That the dark haired one? Tough like her mama?" Rio asked, grabbing Beths chin roughly as he spoke and holding her there to look right into his eyes.

"Her head. She tried to help me and...her head." she whispered, a single tear staining her cheek as it slid down.

"I got her. I got em all outside in the car. Emma has the keys. Take em to your sisters house." His tone was too calm, it was eerie.

"I have to clean this up. There's a dead body in my bedroom." she exclaimed, gesturing her arms wide out in front of her to remind him to take in the state of the space. Not only was there a dead, bloody body. There was also one hell of a mess. Broken glass everywhere and fingernail scratches lined the entire door frame of her en suite.

"Your girls already paid me to clean this up so get outta here so I can do my job and get home. Gang bangers gotta sleep too yanno." he said with a smirk, letting go of her chin and pushing a single finger to her chest roughly. "Get outta here. And you tell your twin in the car that she did a good job. Rio's real proud of her." he said, grabbing his phone and calling whoever it was he always called to clean up the dead bodies that always seemed to find Beth.

She bit the inside of her lip before stopping in the doorway and looking back at him. She couldn't figure out if she was speechless or simply didn't want to tell him. But she knew she had to. Knew they had an unspoken understanding.

She knew she trusted him.

"What is it, Elizabeth?" he asked, taking those few steps across the room to meet her in the doorway. Half in, half out. He brushed her bangs away from her eyes and tucked it behind her ear, his eyes never leaving hers.

"He tried to hire two teenagers to kill you. That's why he was here tonight. He wanted information on how to find you." she explained.

"That why he hurt you?" he asked, his eyes roaming down from her face to her neck which was becoming more bruised by the second. He brushed the back of his hand over the area and she flinched back slightly.

"Mhhmm" he shook his head and grabbed the back of her head roughly, pulling her back to him. "Don't do that. You're too strong for that. So get that brave face on and get those kids to your sisters. I'll be in touch." he pressed a hard kiss to her temple before giving her a firm shove away, through the threshold until she stumbled a bit into the hallway.

She didn't need to be told twice. She grabbed her purse on the way out the door and ran to the car where her kids were waiting.

His car.

Thinking this will be a One-Shot but let me know what you think. Maybe I'll add more. Love to hear from you.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the love guys. I’ll be continuing this story after receiving all your reviews Xoxox

Chapter Two

The kids rushed their aunt Annie the moment they walked in the door. While Beth was heavy with the events of the evening, her hands still stained red, the kids were ecstatic being awake past their bedtime and at their favorite, no rules, house. Annie wrapped the two girls in a tight hug, lifting them up off the ground and running into her bedroom, throwing them onto the bed in a fit of giggles. Beth took the boys and got them set up in the guest room. Her and her sister would be camping out in the living room. It was unspoken. Annie was always a trouble maker, keeping Beth on her toes her entire life. She always picked up after any mess her little sister made. In exchange, she was rewarded with an unwavering loyalty that she couldn't be more grateful for. Without Annie, she wouldn't have made it past her 20s, that much was certain. The kids went down surprisingly easy and soon the older woman were in the living room with a full bottle of wine and a bag of stale Twizzlers.

"I know you're probably pissed at me." Annie started, hanging her head and sticking a Twizzler between her teeth.

"Why would I be mad at you?" Beth asked gently, narrowing her eyes in confusion.

"I called Rio and sent him to your house. I know you guys have a weird rivalry/friendship and it was probably weird but I didn't know who else to call and-" Beth cut her off, waving her hand in a fast motion.

"Annie, Jesus Christ." she shook her head and took a long pull of wine. "If you hadn't done what you did, I could be dead right now. Or one of the kids could've been hurt even worse."

"Yea, Emma told me Dean came after her. Said she got away but hit her head on the floor pretty hard. I gave her some children's Motrin to help with the pain. She's ok." Annie assured her sister, putting her hand on her shoulder as the two sat side by side on the old couch.

Beth placed her head on Annies shoulder with a shaky sigh. "I've taken a lot of shit from Dean but I have always done everything I could to protect those kids. When I saw Emma's hair matted with blood..." her voice trailed off, unable to find the words. "I know it's because she looks the most like me..."

"I can't imagine your mind right now." Annie whispered. "I know it's shitty, but this is going to do wonders for getting that retraining order you wanted. It can't get denied this time with all this proof."

"No need. Deans dead." Beth said way too casually.

"Rio?" Annie asked, also eerily calm.

"Me. But I owe him all the same. He's taking care of the body for me. It wasn't clean." Beth said, refilling her wine glass all the way to the brim and taking another long sip.

"Potato peeler?" Annie joked dryly.

"Baseball bat." she replied with a humorless laugh.

Annie nodded slowly. "Makes sense."

Before they could talk anymore there was one single knock on the door. If they didn't look at one another, they would've dismissed the phantom sound all together. Annie grabbed another Twizzler before throwing the front door open. Rio wasted no time walking inside.

"No gangster knock? You feelin ok,buddy?" The youngest sister joked, chewing the stale candy between her teeth.

"Gangster knock? I'm a professional, short stop." he said, breezing past Annie to stand in front of Beth. She looked up at him from her spot on the couch, setting her wine glass down slowly, keeping eye contact with him while waiting for him to speak.

"Kids asleep?" he asked, back to the two worded sentences that she loathed.

She nodded.

"Come on." he said, turning away from her and heading back out the door without a second glance to Annie or any further instructions. Beth didn't need any more information. She got to her feet and looked at her sister.

"I'll take care of the kids. You do what you gotta do." she promised, smacking her sisters butt as she walked out the door.

"I owe you." Beth said, passing the threshold into the hallway of the apartment building.

"You bet you do." Annie smiled, closing the door casually.

Even walking quickly, she was still two full paces behind Rio and his long, cool strides. It wasn't until the cold night air hit her that she realized she was barefoot and in borrowed clothes from Annie that consisted of small black sleep shorts and an Ozzy Osbourne t shirt. Rio held the passenger side door open for her, earning him a raised eyebrow from the redhead, making no move to get into the car.

"Really? I've held a gun to your head and I get no reaction, but I hold a door open and you're giving me this look? Get the fuck in the car." he rolled his eyes and motioned for her to hurry up with three quick snaps. She waited half a beat before she slid carefully into the sleek black car, pulling the shorts down as much as they would allow before her employer got into the drivers seat.

He regarded her slowly, his eyes raking over her from top to tail.

"Those suppose to be pants?" he finally said, turning the key in the ignition but dropping his hands from the steering wheel to turn his body towards hers. He made a long stretch, pulling his arms over his head like one does at the end of a stressful day. When his arms fell back down, one of them was leaned against his door while the other draped across the back of Beths seat. He let a single finger brush against her soft, long locks and was surprised when she didn't back away from his touch. Rio was surprised further when she actually breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back into his hand. His one finger against her hair was replaced with his entire palm resting on the back of her neck tenderly.

"Talk to me, Elizabeth." he said softly, running his fingers up the nape of her neck, playing with her hair.

"I killed my husband." she said simply, bowing her head in both exhaustion and shame, her eyes looking up at him from under her thick lashes.

"He would've killed you if you aint." Rio never used more words then he had to. He wasn't one for lavish expressions of emotion or love but Beth found that every word he spoke was exactly what she needed to hear.

"What did Annie have to give you to help me?" she asked once silence settled in the cramped space.

He laughed, the volume surprising her. "Her and your friend offered their cuts of the cash."

Beth nodded, tapping her fingers against her exposed thigh. His free hand quickly covered hers, stopping her nervous twitch.

"Ask me." he dared her, the warmth his hand offered hers giving her more comfort then she had received in a long time.

"Ask you what?" she responded, finally raising her head more to stare at his with her regular confidence, eyes narrowed the way only hers could.

"Ask. Me." he enunciated harshly, offering no other words. He knew she understood his meaning, and he gave her the time she needed to finally say it.

"What are you going to make me do to pay off this debt?" her voice strong but sadder then he liked.

"You and I are going to do one last job across the border, and then I'm giving you an out." he said simply, giving the back of her head one final stroke before both hands went to the steering wheel and he whipped the car out of the parking spot and sped towards their destination. When they pulled into her driveway, she noticed a van was parked further up. Rio was already out of the car, walking around to her side before she even had her seat belt off. Before she could reach for the handle, he had pulled it open for her to get out. Her bare feet touched the cold gravel of her driveway, small pebbles digging into her heel.

"Couldn't even grab your shoes, Red?" he poked fun at her with a sideways grin. She followed him up the front steps but was stopped when Rios large hand reached out to cover hers on the doorknob before she could turn it.

"Hold up." he said, prying her hand off the bronze handle and turning her to face him completely.

"What?" she asked impatiently. The weight of the day was heavy on her shoulders and she felt like it might crush her any minute now. Rio sensed this and brushed her hair away from her face softly, causing her to breath deeply, forcing herself to relax as best she could. "Sorry." she muttered lazily.

"We took care of the master but your daughters room is why I brought you back here. We aint touch it yet." he said slowly, leaning closer to her and reaching around her to open the front door.

"What do you mean? Do I need to pay more to have an extra room decriminalized?" she followed him into the entryway, both of them stopping right inside the door.

"Naw, darlin. I think you underestimate how much cash I have. I'm not chargin you per room. It's one flat rate." he winked at her, leading the way up the stairs. "Just thought you might want to see it. Closure and shit." he added, forcing his voice to sound bored.

"Speakin of which, what did you mean when you said you are giving me an out? What makes you think I want out?" her words surprised him to the point where he stopped halfway up the stairs to turn back, locking his dark brown eyes with her blue ones.

"I can't go one day without you bitches beggin me to leave y'all alone. That all this was a one time thing." He said, leaning his back against the sleek wood railing.

"Yea, well, turns out I'm pretty good at it. So I think I'll keep at it. Unless you're trying to get rid of me. I'm sure this wasn't exactly great for our professional relationship. After all, I'm just work to you." she threw his words back at him and he kicked the back of his foot against the wall lightly, staring down as he did.

"Safer that way." Rio was back to clear and concise as he started back up the rest of the steps to the landing of the second floor. "Trust me on that." he added, willing her to understand without giving her any actual information to help her do so.

"I do." she said, reaching down to grab his hand when she met him on the landing. "Trust you I mean."

"Don't trust me too much. You got too good a head of your shoulders to get stupid over me." They walked side by side to Emma's room and stopped. Rio stepped in front of the door, leaning his back against it.

"Why are we standing outside the door, Rio?" she asked cautiously, trying to reach past his body for the knob. He smacked her hand away.

"Remember, your kid is safe and asleep at her aunts house." Beth was stunned by the tender tone he used and even more by the kindness in his eyes that were normally dark and disinterested.

"What's in there?" she asked fearfully, tears already welling up in her eyes. She didn't let them fall but they shined against her blue eyes like glass.

"She's fine. And the guy who did this to her is dead. Her mama protected her because she's a badass." he said with a sad smile, reaching behind his back and opening it with his body still leaning against it. She squeezed past him and turned her head away almost immediately, bile making its way up her throat. She swallowed it down, took a deep breath, and gave the room her full attention. She barely registered two other men in the room, each holding large black canvas bags. They stood unmoving in the corner of the room as she took another step forward, Rio leaving the door wide open behind them.

"She just hit her head...how is there so much blood." Beth breathed the words out so softly, mostly speaking to herself. The room was covered in thick, red smears, including a bloody hand print against the wall near Emma's bed. It looked like her daughter had started throwing things into a suitcase at the first sign of trouble, despite her open head wound. The evidence in front of her was overwhelming. So much blood in such a young childs bedroom and it was all her fault. She should've been able to protect her children and she had failed them.

"You just sit over there, ma'am. We'll get this cleaned up. Kid wont even know the difference." Rios gunman assured her, motioning her over to the wooden desk chair in the corner.

"Can I see the other room?" she asked, directing her question at the man who had just spoken. Rio, however, was the one to answer her.

He looked at his associates wordlessly.

They nodded, getting to work immediately. They shoved the bloody carpet into the garbage bag along with anything else that had been touched with bloody hands.

Rio said nothing as he pulled Beth by the wrist out into the hallway. Before the could walk across the hall to the master bedroom, her back slammed against her daughters door and she slid down it until her butt hit the floor. She covered her face with her hands and shook violently with gut wrenching sobs. He said nothing as she cried, standing above her like a great shadow looking down at her.

"I tried to get a restraining order and they rejected me. I kicked him out and he broke in. I did everything I could think of to protect my kids and he hurt them anyways. That man put his hands on my daughter." her words dripped with venom, her eyes looking up to meet his beneath her lashes.

"He did. So you took him out." he said simply, offering no other form of comfort as she cried on the floor in front of him.

"Should've killed him a long time ago and this never would've happened." she whispered, drying her eyes and resting her chin on her bare, raised knees.

"Yea, well, hindsight and all that shit." he said, extending his arm slowly, offering his hand.

She looked up at him for a moment, shattered eyes and broken hearted, before she slid her hand into his and let him pull her up to stand. Instead of letting go he yanked her roughly against him until her chest slammed into his.

"Don't cry again." he whispered threateningly as he stared her down. She flinched back slightly but Rio wrapped his arm around her back, bringing her chest back to his. She was a head shorter then him so she had to trail her eyes from their level view at his chest, up to his lips, to eventually rest on his dark brown eyes. She felt his body stiffen, the intimacy of her stare clearly making him uneasy.

"I can't fuckin take it." he finally breathed, turning away from her and heading in the direction of the master bedroom.

Beth found so many questions swirling around in her mind that she desperately wanted to ask but her mouth fell silent. So she followed him wordlessly down the hall, and through the door he was currently holding open. The proximity of their bodies became increasingly obvious when his breath hit the back of her neck as she passed him into the room. This time he shut the door when they were both inside, turning the lock loudly.

"This the part where you hold a gun to my head?" she asked, crossing the room to sit on her newly made bed, staring at the immaculate room in front of her. It was cleaner then it had ever been. There wasn't a single hair of proof to show that anything that had happened in here only hours earlier had been anything but a bad dream. But Beth knew better. She knew it was all too real.

"Only if you deserve it. I'm no monster." his smile was weak as he sat beside her on the bed, putting a fair amount of distance between them. He leaned back on his palms and surveyed the room the same as she was, admiring his handywork no doubt.

"You're the pro here. What do I tell the cops when they come knocking on my door, asking where Dean is."

"Ah," he drawled, his tongue flicking out to wet his top lip briefly. "That'll cost ya extra, darlin." he joked, the corners of his mouth lifting to show that he wasn't serious.

"I'm so glad you find my life amusing." Beth rolled her eyes, pushing herself off the bed to stand in front of him, staring him down with narrowed eyes.

"The kids all heard what happened and the dark haired girl saw a lot." he started, pulling her arm down roughly to sit back beside him, her bare thigh brushing against his as she narrowly avoided falling into his lap. She nodded for him to continue.

"Start with the truth. Tell em he came over, put his hands on the girl and on you." Rio's voice tight with suppressed rage at his own recount of the evening, "He finally left after roughing you up a bit and you aint seen him since. Tomorrow, first thing in the morning, you're gonna go and try to file another order of protection against him. Bring your daughter and tell em everything he did. They'll never suspect you. The kids are your best defense." he instructed her carefully, watching her eyes as she nodded along at his words.

"It's nearly morning already. I'll grab Emma and we'll go to the police station in a few hours." she agreed, biting the inside of her lip nervously.

"Easy parts over. Hard part's keepin yourself outta jail." he reminded her, clapping his hand down on her thigh with a resounding smack. "Think you can handle it?"

She took his hand and threw it off her leg. "I think I have to." she said,standing up once again, stepping towards the door. She grabbed the silver doorknob for a moment before dropping it and turning around to face him. He stayed glued to her bed, regarding her with a raised brow.

"Thank you. I know it was just a job that you did to get paid but I'm still going to say it. Thank you for cleaning up my mess. I can promise you it'll be the last time." Each word was carefully chosen and she shut her mouth the second she was done speaking. She turned back to the door and jumped when she felt his chest against her back and his breath on her ear. He had gotten up from the bed to come up behind her without making even the slightest bit of noise.

His lips brushed against her ear as he spoke. He wrapped one arm around her, pressed his palm to her stomach to hold her harder against his chest. He then reached the other further out in front of them to cover hers which was gripping the handle tightly. He felt her hold slowly loosen under his fingers.

"If you hadn't killed him, I would've. No one puts their hands on you like that." he growled through gritted teeth, his breath hot in her ear.

"You've held me at gunpoint." she countered, breathing unevenly against him, her eyes staring at their joined hands on the doorknob in front of her.

"It's not the same thing, Elizabeth." he breathed, twisting her hand under his and pushing the door open. "You know it's not."


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rios feelings start to show.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys are enjoying

Chapter Three

The police station went smoother then she thought, and her and Emma were done within a few hours. Her daughter was understandably shaken after the last 24 hours she had experienced but she was strong. Beth thought it would be a good idea to have some alone time to talk to her and drove back in the direction of their home, stopping at a small diner she knew Emma loved.

“Come on honey. Let's get some lunch before we go home. I'll even let you have a soda.” she bribed, helping her 6 year old out of her car seat and leading her inside the restaurant. As she held the door open for the little girl, she saw Rios car parked down the block, the windows tinted so she couldn't see inside. She ignored it as best she could and gave her daughter her full attention.

“Do you want to talk about what happened with Daddy?” she asked the little girl after they placed their order with the waitress.

“Where is he?” she asked cautiously, sipping her root beer that she held in her lap.

“I don't know, Emma.” she answered sadly, reaching across the table for her daughters hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

“Is he going to hurt us again?” this question hitting Beth like a punch to the gut. Before she could answer, Rio got up from the booth directly behind Emma and stood at the end of their table.

“Naw, little mami, he's not going to hurt you or your mama ever again. “ he assured her, his voice hard but laced with exhaustion.  
Emma's eyes lit up as the older man sat down beside her in the booth. 

“It's you! You were at the house! You took care of me.” she exclaimed, immediately sliding closer to him on the bench seat. 

“Emma, I don't think-” Beth started but he waved her words away.

“She's fine, Elizabeth.” Rio said, lifting his arm up over the back of the seat so the little girl could more comfortably hug his side. “And I didn't take care of you nearly as much as your mom did. She's been protecting you for a long time, aint that right?” he said, talking to Emma but looking directly at Beth.

“Yea, Daddy use to come into my room at night and mommy would-” the little girls words got cut off when Beth spoke over her.

“Okay, baby that's enough. Let's talk about something else. Daddy isn't going to hurt us anymore, I promise.” she said, taking a long sip of her own soda and avoiding Rios eyes that were now slanted in rage.

The waitress dropped off their food, taking one look at the tattooed mans expression and asking no questions as she set the plates down and scurried away.

Emma dug into her plate of mac and cheese right away while Beth used her fork to push lettuce around her plate.

“How's that mac taste, Angel?” Rio finally tore his eyes away to talk to Emma.

“Real good. You want some?” she asked, offering him a fork full of cheesy pasta.

“Can't say no to that.” he smirked, letting her put the fork in his mouth sloppily, smearing cheese across his cheek as she did. He wiped the back of his hand across his face to clear it and made a dramatic show of how good it tasted.

“You got good taste kid. Maybe next time I'm here I'll get what you're havin.” he said, watching her innocently as she continued to eat.

“What are you doing here, Rio?” she asked while her daughter distracted herself with coloring on the paper place mat beside her plate.

“What would happen in her bedroom, Elizabeth?” he countered her question with his own.

Beth bit her tongue inside her cheek and took a deep breath. “Em, you can tell him about Daddy if you want. Only if it doesn't make you sad.” she said.

“What's your name anyways?” The little girl put down her crayon and found her eyes glued to his neck tattoo.

“Rio.” he answered simply, looking down at her.

“You make mommy cry sometimes.” she said casually, picking her crayon back up to color. Rio glanced over at Beth who avoided his glance and started ripping her napkin up into pieces on the table.

“That right?” he urged the little girl to say more.

“I heard her talking to auntie Annie one time about a bathroom break. And how afterwards you treated her different. Mommy said it made her feel like she wasn't worth any money.” her little voice rattled off much to Beths embarrassment.

Rio was confused by the last part and looked over at Beth who sighed before explaining, brushing her mess of napkin pieces to the ground under the table.

“The word was cheap, honey. And you should've been in bed, not listening to mommys conversations.” she reprimanded gently, giving her daughter a sad smile so she knew it was okay.

Rio opened his mouth to say something but Beth shook her head. “Don't” she mouthed silently, looking at her daughter.

“So what about your Daddy? He would come in your room sometimes?” he urged, picking up another crayon and coloring the outside border of her place mat to keep her distracted enough to open up. 

“Blues my favorite color.” she commented, pointing at the color he chose before she answered his question. “Daddy says I look the most like mommy so sometimes he gets confused. He would try to get into bed with me but mommy always came in and showed him the right room to sleep in. Even when he should've been living somewhere else. I don't know how he always go inside my room when he was suppose to be staying with grandma. Mommy kicked him out of the house for good when he forced her to do something she didn't want to do. That's what she told aunt Annie.” she scribbled away, not knowing how heavy her words weighed on the two adults.

“He make you do stuff you didn't wanna do a lot?” he asked Beth, regarding her with anger and urgency.

“It was the only way to get him out of Emma's room without causing a scene.” she answered, bowing her head in shame at memories of her weakness.

“You aint gotta do that. Don't look down like that like you aint a badass woman who protects her cubs.” his voice firm as he watched her raise her head and look at him from under her thick lashes.

Rio tossed way too many bills on the table before the three of them walked out of the building together. 

“Can I ride in your car?” Emma asked excitedly when she saw his fancy black car down the block that flashed as he unlocked it.

“Not today, Angel. I got too much dirty laundry in the backseat. Maybe next time.” he ruffled her hair before walking towards his car, turning his back on the girls. Beth was buckling her daughter into her car seat when she stopped outside her own door, letting her eyes follow the direction Rio had gone. He was leaning against his car, watching her protectively. He was clearly waiting for her to pull away before he did the same. 

“I'll be seeing you soon, Elizabeth.” he called from down the block, getting into his car the same time she did. 

She had no idea that soon would be later that same night. 

Beth was so relieved to be in her home with all of her babies, tucking them each into bed personally, no matter how much the older two fussed about being too old for it. She kissed each of their foreheads and tucked the blankets tight around their small bodies. Dean was finally gone and it gave her such an overwhelming sense of security. She let herself smile briefly as she poured herself a small glass of bourbon on the rocks. Beth opened her back screen down and walked outside to enjoy the warm night air. She was dressed in her pajamas which consisted of a pair of small sleep shorts and an oversize blue hoodie that made her eyes stand out against the matching color. She perched herself comfortably on top of the picnic table, taking a long sip of her drink. This was the first time she had ever felt truly safe in her own home. And while that made her feel so good right now, it also hurt to realize how much she had been suffering.

“Pretty woman like you shouldn't be sittin outside alone this late at night.” his voice surprised her as he looked towards the sound. He walked out from the shadows of her yard and sat beside her on the table like he had done it a dozen times before. 

“Maybe men like you shouldn't be bothering woman sitting alone in their own yards.” she countered with a small smile in his direction. The day had been hard and she didn't want to fight.

“Couldn't stop thinkin about what that kid of yours said.” he started, clarifying which part he meant when she looked at him with confusion.

“You really been cryin because of me, darlin?” he asked. He tried to sound as cocky as he could but she saw in his eyes the reason for asking that question. 

“Thought you liked seeing me cry. It's happened so many times now, why should you care about one more to add to the list?” she finished her drink in one last gulp, setting it down beside her bare thigh on the table.

“Never wanted you to feel cheap.” he explained briefly. They hadn't spoken about that night in the bathroom and she didn't want to now either, but he was forcing her hand. Even when she stayed silent, he pressed her further with a question that couldn't be ignored.

“How many men you been with, Elizabeth?” his voice quiet as he watched her facial expression change, preparing herself to respond. 

“That's a pretty personal question to ask a woman you hardly know.” she countered.

He laughed suddenly, catching her off guard as his white teeth caught the moonlight and his eyes burned into hers. “That's cute. You actin like I don't know you.” he laughed again, folding his hands in his lap and watching her carefully.

“Ok smart guy. Tell me something you think you know about me that's not common knowledge.” she dared him, insulted that he thought she was such an open book. His answer, however, came quickly and surprised her as it rang with truth.

“You been takin care of every body else since you was a kid. I know you chased after that sister of yours your whole life and I bet you been takin care of that deadbeat husband of yours for as long as you can remember. You even know who you are without other people tellin you who you gotta be?” he provoked her.

“Ouch.” she said with a nervous breath, looking at him as he tried to search her eyes for more. “You got me there.” she whispers, biting her lip as the words sunk in. She had never felt as exposed under someone elses gaze as she did right now. 

“So, the real question,” he reached her hand over to brush the hair out of her face. “If you always cleanin up after everyone, who's takin care of you?” he let his hand linger at the back of her head for a minute, his fingers running through her hair tenderly. 

“No one wants that big of a job.” she whispers sadly, shaking her head so his hand falls away from her before she can lean into it like she wants to.

“Naw.” he starts, standing up from his seat beside her to walk to her side. He looked down at her, pressing a firm kiss to the top of her head. “It's not a big job. You just aint found the right man who will be loyal to you and your kids. Lot of guys would jump at the chance to take care of you.” 

“I don't need anyone to take care of me.” she called after him as he disappeared back into the shadows of her open back yard.

“Too bad.” his voice rang out even when he was completely out of site. She smiled despite herself at his vague words. She slept better that night, wrapped up in her sheets, then she had in the last 10 years.

Thoughts of him flooded her mind the entire night.


End file.
